Cumin (Cuminum cyminum): Possible PEM Blocker

[Wishful]

Just started giving this a go 1 teaspoon of cumin. Is there a way to cancel out the nausea and diarrhea?

I never experienced any unpleasant side effects from cumin, so no, I can't offer any firm advice. We're all unique in our responses to various things.

Maybe try a much smaller amount and see if you can build up tolerance? It was as effective for me sublingually (held in mouth for a few minutes) even if I spat it out after, so you could try that.

I'm sorry to hear that you had a bad reaction to it. I keep waiting for someone else to have a significant benefit from it.

 

[godlovesatrier]

Hey wishful,

It tastes much better than I expected actually so I'll try it in the mouth. Interestingly it's definitely had an effect. I tried not to take anything else today. But it's definitely had an effect. Just about to drive now to see how that makes me feel.

 

[Wishful]

Interestingly it's definitely had an effect.

Hopefully you don't mean projectile vomiting and explosive diarrhea.

 

[godlovesatrier]

haha. Well! I do have an update close to that ;p So I did have a bad reaction late in the day (diarrhea!) to the cumin. I also experienced some headaches throughout the day, which I think was related because I haven't had them today and I haven't taken any cumin.

But when I say it had an effect I mean that I had a consistent energy boost which didn't cause a crash and overall I think (at least for my first attempt!) that it did help to block any potential PEM. I woke up thismorning more tired than usual, with some very mild fatigue, it's just hard to know if it would have been worse without the cumin. I'll experiment more as I like to rule various things out and I'll let you know how i get on

But it definitely had a stimulatory effect on my body, possibly even my immune system and I don't really feel like those effects are entirely gone today to be honest. Things that help me feel better, like ginseng, astragalus, various anti viral tinctures mixed and drank together, usually have this stimulatory effect where my heart rate goes up and I begin to feel a bit more normal. Then again I was born with a temporary heart issue (which resolved within a few hours of being born), but it's still not entirely clear what that was all about, I also have dyslexia and they think that lack of oxygen at birth can cause that (or they used to). So it's hard to know if my heart is simply not as strong and never has been.

I'll post back when I try cumin again, not sure when yet due to the unpleasant tummy side effects! But very worthwhile experiment, no bad effects apart from that, which is always good news.

 

[Wishful]

@godlovesatrier , I did think of one more possibility: perilla (beefsteak plant, used in Japanese cuisine) has perillaaldehyde which is similar to cuminaldehyde. I didn't have a convenient source for it, so I never tried it, but it might be worth trying if you really can't tolerate cumin. The only way to know whether the two aldehydes are similar enough is to experiment.

Of course, perilla might just give you bright red explosive diarrhea.

 

[Jyoti]

perilla (beefsteak plant, used in Japanese cuisine) has perillaaldehyde which is similar to cuminaldehyde.

I wonder why I have always LOVED both of these herb/spices? Am I deficient in something they contain? I will have to look further.

And, I want to remind you Wishful that although you may not have a list of testimonies in regard to cumin as a PEM blocker, you have mine for it as a PEM reliever. I use it all the time and think of you every one.

 

[Wishful]

I use it all the time and think of you every one.

Oh good. I'm glad that it's helping someone else. I wish that I could figure out how to make it work reliably for all of us.

 

[Strawberry]

I keep waiting for someone else to have a significant benefit from it.

I always had a positive experience with cumin. I just hate the taste, and forget so quickly that it worked. I’ll try it again as I need all the help I can get.

 

[Greenplum]

Hello Wishful! Thank you so much for posting about your cumin experiment! I have joined this site to thank you and to add my positive experience with cumin. I have been following your protocol of one teaspoon every three days for about a month now.

The first day I tried it, I was already in a pretty deep crash from being forced to work overtime at my job. It did indeed reduce the length of the crash. So, I continued with the experiment...and haven’t had a crash since. Which is amazing, since I am being forced to work waaay too much overtime. I was close to thinking that I would have to quit my job (and live in a cardboard box under a bridge). Normally I barely could make it through a 40 hour work week and spent the weekends trying to “recover”.

I have found the easiest way to take the cumin (or jeera as the East Indians call it) is to put a teaspoon of ground cumin in a couple tablespoons of ground chickpea/hummus and eating it with carrot or cucumber slices. Or pita. My local grocery store has a carmelized onion hummus that balances well with the cumin taste. Sometimes I just add cumin to my morning scrambled eggs.

 

[Wishful]

Which is amazing,

Yes, the first time I noticed the effect was a day of chainsawing, which I was sure was going to result in horrible PEM the next day. I was amazed and delighted when the PEM didn't show up.

Now you can tell people: "Cumin makes me feel good!" ... and hope that they don't misunderstand.

 

[Wishful]

I just hate the taste, and forget so quickly that it worked.

You could try putting it in capsules. The taste might leak through the gelatin over time, so I recommend not making several months worth of capsules at a time. I never loved the taste, but I did love the effect.

 

[Booble]

I always had a positive experience with cumin. I just hate the taste, and forget so quickly that it worked. I’ll try it again as I need all the help I can get.

I dislike the taste of cumin and those similar related spices as well. Darn.

 

[Wishful]

I dislike the taste of cumin and those similar related spices as well. Darn.

Another candidate for capsules! Just hope that you don't get godlovesatrier's digestive upset.

 

[lenora]

Just a reminder for people to not use the cumin purchased from the spice rack at the local grocery store. It's not the same....and having it sprinkled on scrambled eggs sounds like a good idea. I think, anyway!

 

[Wishful]

Just a reminder for people to not use the cumin purchased from the spice rack at the local grocery store.

That's what worked for me: no-name ground cumin worked just as well as cumin seed from the bulk bins. There are varieties of cumin that are low in cuminaldehyde grown in some parts of the world, but the cheap stuff available here in Canada seems to be reasonably high in it. I think it's the expensive organic products that are more likely to be low in cuminaldehyde.

 

[Booble]

I think I could probably get used to the taste. I wouldn't want to do a whole teaspoon or capsule full as I like to go slowly with things like that. But I might try making a few Indian style dishes even though those are not my favorite flavors. They seem like the kind you can acclimate to.

 

[lenora]

OK, now I am confused. We've been explicity warned about not using spice rack condiments for our health. Please, I'm not debating what you're saying, but what is exactly written that leads you to believe the ordinary spice rack cumin is fine?

It's possible that in India and Canada there is a definite difference. I know that Canada also has large populations of Indians, so perhaps it is difference. Confusing!! But if it's working for you, that's wonderful. Keep using it. Yours, Lenora.

 

[Greenplum]

I am also using cumin from the spice rack - though I bought big bags of both ground and whole seed cumin at a local Indian market. Main difference, I think, is the freshness of the spice. That might explain why did doesn’t work for some people? Hmm, I wonder if fresh seeds right from the plant would be even more effective (as in, being able to use less). I might have to try growing it.

 

[Jyoti]

I'm wondering: raw or cooked?

I see some of us are cooking the cumin and some not. Anyone with thoughts about this?

 

[pamojja]

Hmm, I wonder if fresh seeds right from the plant would be even more effective (as in, being able to use less).

In Ayurveda they have the rule of thumb, thant herbal powders are most potent for half a year.